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View of the Castello
La Spezia
View
A beautiful view
To reach monterosso from Genoa do I have to go to La Spezia first
No.
La Sp is at one end of the CT coast, Genoa the other.
You can find train times, details and fares in English here:
http://www.trenitalia.com/homepage_en.html
Trains go directly from Genoa (Genova) to Monterosso.
Driving directions and estimated times here:
www.viamichelin.com
You will not go through La Sp.
What happens if you look for rail solutions from Genova to one of the Cinque Terre is that sometimes the web engine will suggest a solution that has you going all the way from Genova to La Spezia (yes, passing the 5 Cinque Terre on the way), then backtracking from la Spezia to one of the Terre. Why? Because many of the faster trains don't stop in the villages (or stop in only one or two), so timewise, when coming from Genova, it is often faster to take the fast train to La Spezia, then a local train to the "terra" of your choice.
However, as leics says, it is perfectly possibly to take a local ("regional") train from Genova directly to Monterosso; it will just stop a lot more often...but the view is scenic...in fact, at www.trenitalia.com it lists a large number of such regional trains and at least three faster InterCity trains that stop at Monterosso, so you're good to go...
Bill
Golfo dei Poeti (Poet’s Gulf) is the name of this coast, also known as La Spezia’s Gulf. It spreads from Portovenere and the Cinque Terre till Lerici, being that La Spezia is situated on a bay.
It is said that Byron and Shelley named the area, since both were great admirers of this beautiful coastal landscape. They say that Byron once swam across the bay from Portovenere till San Terenzo to visit Shelley.
Something I noticed in this part of Italy is that streets are lined with orange trees, same thing as in some areas of Portugal (my home country). La Spezia is no exception and while strolling through the city's streets you will notice the orange trees covered in oranges (July) making streets even more colourful. In my opinion, the orange trees make the city look less impersonal and seem cosier, as if walking on a small village or backyard.
Porto Venere is an amazing place very close to La Spezia, in a quiet corner of the gulf and on my opinion is one of the best location which worth a visit here. From its picturesque port, you may explore the narrow street climbig up to the center and up again to the church that dominates all the town. Here you will find a lot of shops selling the typical dishes of this part of Liguria.
I was invited to visit La Spezia a few years ago by Stefano, a work colleague who lives in the town, and this year (August 2002) I actually manaaged to get there.
Now I wish i had made time earlier - it was a fantastic weekend in a very beautiful part of Italy.
Stefano and his family showed me around the area, and I was lucky enough to be there at the time of the celebration of the 'White Madonna' at Porto Venere, just along the bay.
La Spezia is a small town in northern Italy that has grown up around the largest if Italy's naval bases.
The bay is protected by a large man-made barrier which gives near perfect sailing conditions in the bay whatever the time of year.
The surrounding hills are dotted with small pictureque villages, and are well worth a visit.
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